Tokyo Electron Limited

Kentaro Asakura

Tadahiro Ishizaka

Toshio Hasegawa

Seishi Murakami

Kensaku Narushima

Masahisa Watanabe

Daisuke Toriya

Takashi Mochizuki

Einosuke Tsuda

Yuichiro Wagatsuma

Tetsuya Saitou

Hiroo Kawasaki

Yasuyuki Kagaya

Takahisa Mase

Melvin Verbaas

Saki Matsuo

Nobutaka Yoshioka

Koichi Nakajima

Masanao Ando

There is a substrate placing method for placing a substrate on a placing surface of a placing table in a chamber of a substrate processing apparatus for processing a substrate, the placing table having the placing surface on which a substrate is placed and a tapered surface for guiding the substrate disposed at an outer periphery of the placing surface, the method comprising, locating a lift pin to a substrate transfer position over the placing surface, the lift pin being capable of protruding from and retracting below the placing surface, and transferring the substrate onto the lift pin; lowering the lift pin, on which the substrate is placed, to a substrate placing position lower than the placing surface; and raising the lift pin by a short distance and then returning the lift pin to the substrate placing position.

Substrate placing method and substrate placing mechanism

A stage device includes: a stage having a pin hole provided therein and a placement surface on which a substrate is placed; and at least one lift pin configured to move up and down through the pin hole; and a lifter configured to raise and lower the at least one lift pin, wherein the stage includes a first heating part provided therein and configured to heat the stage, and the at least one lift pin includes a second heating part provided therein or therearound and configured to heat the at least one lift pin.

Stage device and substrate processing apparatus

Multi-point thermocouples and assemblies are disclosed for ceramic heating structures. The disclosed embodiments provide multi-point connections in distinct areas to provide good temperature-sensing contacts between metal thermocouples and ceramic bodies while also providing improved flexibility. As such, cracking of ceramic bodies for heating structures is avoided. For one embodiment, assemblies including a multi-point thermocouple and a ceramic body are used in bake plates for processing systems that process microelectronic workpieces. The metal thermocouple has a flat surface used for connections to the ceramic body. Preferably, the thermocouple is relatively thin and provides improved connection sites and flexibility.

Multi-point thermocouples and assemblies for ceramic heating structures

A substrate processing apparatus includes: a stage for performing at least one of heating and cooling on a substrate placed thereon and having a through-hole vertically penetrating the stage; a substrate support pin having an insertion portion inserted into the through-hole and configured so that the insertion portion protrudes from an upper surface of the stage through the through-hole; and a pin support member for supporting the substrate support pin. The substrate support pin has a flange portion located below a lower surface of the stage. The support member supports the substrate support pin by engagement with the flange portion. The through-hole is smaller than the flange portion. The substrate support pin includes a first member including the flange portion and a second member having the insertion portion. The first member has a sliding surface which slidably supports the second member.

Substrate processing apparatus and substrate delivery method

A film formation device includes: a processing vessel; a mounting stand installed within the processing vessel and configured to mount a substrate thereon; an elevating shaft installed so as to extend in an up-down direction while supporting the mounting stand and connected to an external elevator mechanism through a through-hole formed in the processing vessel; a bellows installed between the processing vessel and the elevator mechanism and configured to cover a periphery of the elevating shaft at a lateral side of the elevating shaft; a lid member disposed so as to surround the elevating shaft with a gap left between a lateral circumferential surface of the elevating shaft and the lid member; and a purge gas supply part configured to supply a purge gas into the bellows so that a gas flow from the bellows toward the processing vessel through the gap is formed.

Film formation device

A mounting table structure arranged in a processing chamber is provided for mounting a target object to be processed on the upper surface. The mounting table structure is characterized in having a mounting table wherein a heating unit are embedded to heat the target object to perform a specified heat treatment to the target object, and a supporting column which stands on the bottom portion of the processing chamber and supports the mounting table. The mounting table structure is also characterized in that a heat-equalizing member spread in a planar direction is embedded above the heating unit in the mounting table.

Mounting table structure and heat treatment apparatus

Method for operating a processing system and refurbishing a ceramic substrate holder within a process chamber of the processing system are described. The method includes plasma processing one or more substrates on the ceramic substrate holder, where the processing causes erosion of a nitride material of the ceramic substrate holder. The method further includes refurbishing the ceramic substrate holder in-situ without a substrate residing on the ceramic substrate holder, where the refurbishing includes exposing the ceramic substrate holder to a plasma-excited nitrogen-containing gas in the process chamber to at least partially reverse the erosion of the nitride material.

Method for in-situ refurbishing a ceramic substrate holder

An apparatus for performing a semiconductor process on a target substrate (W) includes a lifting mechanism () disposed in a worktable () to assist transfer of the target substrate. The lifting mechanism includes a lifter pin () configured to support and move up and down the target substrate, and a guide hole () configured to guide the lifter pin being moved up and down. The guide hole includes a main hole portion () which extends through the worktable from its upper surface to lower surface, and an extended hole portion () which extends into an extension sleeve () which projects downward from the lower surface of the worktable to correspond to the main hole portion.

Growing community of inventors

Nirasaki, Japan

Kentaro Asakura